Although the Government has said that universities would need permission to charge more than £6,000, analysis today from the University and College Union shows universities will have to charge £7,000 just to break even. Some institutions – such as the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and Central School of Speech and Drama – will have to charge closer to £8,000.

2. The tuition fees rise will leave students of all backgrounds worse off.

“the big picture is that moderate earners will be stung to the tune of 9p in the pound on income tax, while the wealthiest graduates will be free to clear their debts rapidly”

A progressive graduate tax, of the kind proposed by the NUS rather than caricatured by David Cameron yesterday, would ensure that all graduates earning above a determined threshold would pay back for the same amount of time without any of the debt deterrence.

4. The proposals appear to mean a 64% cut in bursary funds

There is currently £412 million provided to the sector for the purposes of widening participation and fair access in English higher education. The Browne Review recommended that future widening participation initiatives must have funds equal to, or greater than, the current level of investment but the Government has only announced plans for a £150m scholarship scheme.

This talk of whether or not a graduate tax would be better is a distraction and the NUS should never have got themselves dragged into it. We can afford to provide free university education, just as Scotland and Wales can. The government just don’t want to for ideological reasons.